Hi! We're a young married couple making our way in the world. Remember that couple you haven't seen since you had kids? That's us. ;)

We both have full time careers and this blog is our space to share our past and current DIY projects, crafts, recipes, travels, and whatever else we feel like. Two pups add to the hijinx in our misadventures and we wouldn't trade them for anything. Thanks for stopping by and keep in touch!

Thursday, December 30, 2010

If you're new to this blog, welcome to our home! We started Welcome Sunshine Home in May 2010 and it's been a fun hobby for Jake and me to share outside of our full-time office jobs. If you're a faithful reader, I hope you don't mind me gushing about our house. Again.

In August 2005, Jake and I bought this 1892 colonial in southern Maine. Our home has five good sized bedrooms, great closet and storage spaces, lovely moldings, and ONE bathroom. Sigh Gotta love the charm of older homes, right ? :) When we purchased it, every single square foot was screaming for TLC after surviving many years of rental abuse and neglect (chain smokers + absentee landlord = lots of damage). We've used up gallons and gallons of paint, repaired broken windows, done painstaking wallpaper removal, removed nasty carpeting, overhauled the kitchen, updated the bathroom, and on and on and on. So many projects that I can't even remember them. All done before we became bloggers so we didn't think to capture 'before' shots of the house's pitiful original condition.

Monday, December 27, 2010

Did you have a white Christmas? We only had a few inches on the ground Christmas day. It was just enough to provide a nice blanket of white that made everything look as pretty as a greeting card. I didn't remember to bring my camera to my in-laws so I don't have any pretty Christmas photos to share. :( Instead I'll show you the fabric for a project I'm working on. Now without further adieu, here's your consolation prize photo:

Blizzard warnings were in effect today for our county and most of Maine. Jake works for a small nonprofit and their office was closed. I work for an international bank that was not closed. I was able to work from home so no complaints there. :) While I was busy working, Jake was on snow maintenance duty. Our driveway and yard are too small to hire a plow truck or warrant the use of a snow blowerbecause there isn't a place to push or throw the snow. Jake spent a few hours throughout the day shoveling in the wind and cold. While he was outside, he and a neighbor that was shoveling helped someone else push their car out of a snowbank at an intersection near our houses. Fun, fun, fun!

In case you haven't seen one before, this is a snow blower.

A different neighbor blows their snow into our small fenced backyard. The yard our dogs use several times every single day. One time Jake's sister was back there with her dogs and she was pelted with snow courtesy of the neighbor. Nothing says "come visit us again" like snow inside your jacket. The giant heap of blown snow makes the yard unusable for our dogs because they could just climb the snow pile and easily go over the fence. I've tried to go over to talk with them but I can't catch them outside. Not once in 5 years! There are 3-4 apartments in this big converted Victorian but no one answers their door or moves a curtain when I ring their doorbells or knock. I imagine that they're inside, ducking out of sight under their windowsills, holding their breath until I walk home. Ah, the city life.

Do you have any issues (snow related or otherwise) with your neighbors?

Sunday, December 26, 2010

Public tour information was announced on the HGTV Dream Home blog this week. Since Vermont is a drivable distance from our home in Maine and I love road trips, Jake and are going to tour this house. My sister-in-law's home in New Hampshire is conveniently located on the same route so we'd like to make it a fun getaway weekend. Probably during Martin Luther King weekend. :)

In May, Jake and I toured the 2010 HGTV Green Home in Cape Cod. I wanted to pack my bags and move right in. :) I took my own photos and peeked in the drawers/cabinets, then tracked down paint colors, product sources, etc. Here are all the posts in one place. Have fun exploring!